There are still rural communities in South West England that are unable to access broadband, and where they can, the speed does not often stack up against urban areas. The average speed in rural areas tends to be approximately 27 Mbits/s slower due to the cabinets being sited further away from the houses. The focus of local councils favours connecting or upgrading densely populated areas that are easy to reach. Luckily, one broadband provider saw the disparity and decided to take matters into its own hands. Truespeed delivers fast, reliable broadband directly to over 200 communities in the South West.
Truespeed household deals
The company currently offers four different Truespeed deals for households that rise in price depending on speed:
- Truespeed 150 provides 150 Mbits/s at £25 per month;
- Truespeed 300 provides 300 Mbits/s at £29 per month;
- Truespeed 600 provides 600 Mbits/s at £32 per month;
- Truespeed 900 provides 900 Mbits/s at £49 per month.
All deals include a free phone line, free installation, an 18-month contract, and a 30-day money-back guarantee. The biggest attraction of Truespeed is that, unlike many broadband providers, they offer guaranteed up and down speeds so that you don’t have to worry about upload speeds being slower. Even the basic Truespeed 150 deal is suitable for streaming, but larger households would be better with the Truespeed 600.
Truespeed business deals
Businesses can also sign up for a Truespeed deal, choosing from:
- Business SME 150 provides 150 Mbits/s at £38 plus VAT a month;
- Business SME 300 provides 300 Mbits/s at £42 plus VAT a month;
- Business SME 600 provides 600 Mbits/s at £48 plus VAT a month;
- Business SME 900 provides 900 Mbits/s at £52 plus VAT a month.
All deals include a 24-hour fix service level agreement from Monday to Saturday, free installation, a 24-month contract, and a 30-day money-back guarantee. As you don’t share a full-fibre connection with anyone else, connectivity is much more reliable for your business and the Business SME 600 deal is the most popular.
Pros of connecting with Truespeed
As well as getting guaranteed rapid speeds through fibre, connecting with Truespeed offers several pros. Full fibre is installed directly to homes in over 200 rural areas in the South West of England – perfect if you require a stable supply.
No data limit
You can use up to 100 devices in your home as there is no data limit or fair usage policy and traffic is not managed. The company reserves the right to contact you if they feel that your usage impacts other users, but this is unlikely to happen unless you are a serious gamer who plays online 24 hours a day or someone who downloads thousands of hours of video.
Free landline
As well as a free router, you also get access to a free landline, which then enables you to choose a call package, such as evening and weekend calls for £2.99 a month, anytime the UK calls for £6.99 a month, and bolt-ons for mobile and international calls starting at £4.99 a month.
Referral program
Truespeed also offers a referral program where you can get a £35 Amazon gift card for referring a friend or neighbour. What’s more, the person you refer will also receive a £25 gift card and you can refer up to five people.
Great customer service
As the company is small, it doesn’t appear in Ofcom reports, but with over 300 reviews, the average TrustPilot score is 4.5 and customer service is one of its strengths that is highlighted again and again. With its team based in Bath, the contact hours are limited in comparison to some of the larger providers, although, at the moment, you are likely to reach a member of the team working from home due to Covid.
Cons of connecting with Truespeed
While Truespeed’s guaranteed speeds are as good as, or better than, many of the major providers, there are some cons of connecting with them.
No extras
Unlike BT, Sky, or EE, you can’t get any extras like a TV package, Disney+, or Netflix; however, if you do have any of these streaming services, the fast speeds you get with Truespeed ensure that you won’t experience slow loading or annoying buffering.
Router locked down
The router is also locked down, which means that you can’t change the password without calling or emailing Truespeed to request a change, and you can’t manage its interface through an app or website. The company aims to work on this in the future, though.
Exit fees
If you leave before your contract with Truespeed ends, you need to give 30 days’ notice, and you could incur exit fees based on 30% of your monthly bill times the number of months left on your contract.
Porting charge
Furthermore, there is a charge of £15 to port your existing phone number to Truespeed.
How to get connected
The Truespeed website has a postcode checker to check availability in your area. Once you have signed up for a package, you should get connected within 21 days. You will need to let your current broadband provider know that you are leaving them. If Truespeed does not currently offer availability in your area, then you can register your interest for the future so that you don’t miss out on build updates once the interest requirement is met.
The takeaway
Given that some providers are limited to urban areas, Truespeed is great if you live within South West England. However, if you want an all-in-one TV package or you make a lot of calls from home, you might be better considering BT or Sky. If you like to manage your router online, the likes of Vodafone is a great choice; however, what Truespeed is really good at is providing guaranteed speeds with a stable connection for homes and businesses.
